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Articles
for this newsletter are warmly welcomed. Ideally, contributions should be sent
by e-mail or else as a file readable by Word for Windows on a disk in a PC
compatible format. Typed or
hand-written contributions are acceptable if you do not have a word processor.
EDITORIAL ADDRESSES:
Neuro News is published by
the BRITISH ISLES NEUROPTERIDA RECORDING SCHEME from the Biological Records
Centre, ITE Monks Wood, Abbots Ripton, Huntingdon, PE17 2LS, England and is
EDITED BY Colin W. Plant
at 14 West Road, Bishops Stortford, Hertfordshire, CM23 3QP, England.
Specimens for identification or
verification are positively welcomed at the editorial address
provided that they are accompanied by full data. Please, always state whether
or not return of the specimen(s) is required otherwise they will be retained in
my collection. For larger packages,
please enclose return postage stamps.
Telephone/Facsimile callers on 01279-507697 (UK) or ++-44-1279-507697
(from overseas). E-mail
Colinwplant@compuserve.com
Neuro News may now also be read on the internet at address
http://entowww.tamu.edu/research/neuropterida/neuroweb.html
Back
numbers of Neuro
News may be obtained from Biological Records Centre, ITE Monks Wood,
Abbots Ripton, Huntingdon, PE17 2LS, England.
Details
of British Isles recording schemes for other invertebrate groups may be
obtained from the Monks Wood address.
Unfortunately
we missed out on the summer 2000 newsletter.
I blame this directly on global warming! The rain which fell non-stop
until 16th July this year put me so far behind with my consultancy
field surveys that I simply did not have time to write one.
The
wet weather seems to have put a damper on lacewing recording, with very few
records indeed reaching me for the current year. If you are sitting on records,
now would be a good time to send them in to me.
There
have been one or two good things. Sympherobius klapaleki, was added to the
British fauna only two years ago (Whittington, A., Entomologist’s Rec. J. Var (1998) 110: 288 – 289). It has now turned up for the second time in
Britain (in Essex, see Hackett, D., Entomologist’s
Rec. J. Var., (2000) 112:
129 - 130) and for the third (in Surrey, a X in the Rothamsted light trap
at Wisley Gardens, 18/19 August 2000, sorted by Andrew Halstead). In the AIDGAP
key it will run to S. pellucidus, where you will find a footnote warning not to
overlook it. It has the basal two segments of the antennae yellow but note,
however, that Sympherobius elegans
can also have first 2 basal segments of antennae yellowish (especially in
alcohol-prerved material) so always check the number of branches to the radial sector. Males are easy, since the two species are in
different sub-genera and the genitalia are markedly different. As far as I am
aware klapaleki is the only
subgenus Niremberge that has
yellow basal segments. I am of the opinion that S. klapaleki is an overlooked resident; it may be rather
more widespread than appreciated and everyone should be on the lookout for
it.
Panorpa cognata has put in an
appearance in Surrey (Roger Hawkins) and Oxfordshire (John Campbell) – always
on chalk or in association with it. Nothochrysa fulviceps was found by Harry
Eales at a lay-by on the A.68 road to the south of Folly Moss, South
Northumberland (grid reference NY 933769) at 180 metres above sea level. The
insect was beaten from hawthorn (Crataegus
monogyna) scrub against a wall bounding a Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris) plantation. A single oak
tree was noted within 25 metres of the site.
MISSING READER?
We
seem to have lost Rhodri Thomas. The last newsletter sent to him at The Cottage, Fountain Square, Youlgrave, nr.
Bakewell, Derbyshire, DE45 1UR was returned as “gone away”. Does anyone know
where he is? Is he reading this notice?
THE
SYMPOSIUM
The newsletter is not the
only thing to have suffered from my overwork. Having paid my fee and bought a
non-refundable air ticket, I was all set to get myself over to Budapest for the
International Symposium in August. Unfortunately, at the eleventh hour I could
not make it! If anyone else wants to send me a brief report for the next
newsletter I shall be pleased to receive it.
IN MEMORIAM — W. R. B. HYND
Peter Barnard, Natural History Museum, London SW7 5BD
After
a long illness, Bert Hynd, of Farnham, Surrey died on 15 July 2000. Bert was an
excellent all-round entomologist who specialised in the Neuroptera and his
collection of lacewings was one of the largest in private hands in
Britain. He donated his entire insect
collections to The Natural History Museum, London, in 1998. During his career in the Ministry of
Defence, Bert travelled extensively in Europe and USA, collecting as he went,
and also becoming familiar with museums and entomologists around the
world. As a consequence his collections
were comprehensive and accurately identified.
Following his retirement he also collected in Sulawesi, Sri Lanka and
Tanzania.
Bert
was a quiet, self-effacing man, but with strongly held opinions and a great
determination to succeed. Despite his extensive knowledge of Neuroptera he was
reluctant to consider himself equal with professional entomologists. Most of his
time was spent in identifying and curating his collection, and taking many
excellent photographs of insects. However, he attended the 4th International
Symposium on Neuropterology in France in 1991, where he presented two papers,
and also the 5th Symposium in Egypt in 1994.
Bert
published very few papers, and the following list may not be complete:
Hynd,
W. R. B. 1983. Records of Neuroptera from Corfu, Greece. Entomologist's Gazette 34:129‑131.
Hynd,
W. R. B. 1989. Coniopteryx lentiae Aspöck & Aspöck (Neuroptera:
Coniopterygidae) new to Britain. Entomologist's Gazette 40:159‑160.
Hynd,
W. R. B. & Plant, C.W. 1991. Coniopteryx
esbenpeterseni Tjeder (Neuroptera: Coniopterygidae) new to Britain,
with a comment on the subgenus Metaconiopteryx in Britain. Entomologist's
Gazette 42:104‑106.
Hynd,
W. R. B. 1992. On some Neuroptera recently collected in Tanzania (Insecta). In
M. Canard, H. Aspöck, and M. W. Mansell (eds) Current Research in Neuropterology.
Proceedings of the Fourth International Symposium on Neuropterology, Toulouse,
pp. 183‑188.
Hynd,
W. R. B. 1992. New items in neuropteran distribution (Insecta: Neuroptera:
Berothidae, Dilaridae, Ascalaphidae, Myrmeleontidae). In M. Canard, H. Aspöck, and
M. W. Mansell (eds) Current Research in Neuropterology.
Proceedings of the Fourth International Symposium on Neuropterology, Toulouse,
pp. 189‑192.
Aspöck,
U. & Hynd, W.R.B. 1995. A new genus and species of Nosybinae (Neuropt.,
Berothidae) from eastern Africa. Entomologist’s
Monthly Magazine 131: 107-113.
Steve Brooks, Natural History Museum, London SW7 5BD
Work by Charles Henry, Peter Duelli, Ding Johnson and myself has shown
that there are five species in the Chrysoperla
carnea-group in western Europe.
They can be segregated on the basis of their unique substrate-borne
courtship ‘songs’, and the morphology of the genital lip at the apex of the
male abdomen (Henry et al., 1996;
1999; 2000). Our work analysing the
courtship songs of hundreds of individuals collected from all over Britain, and
studying the morphology of these and dead specimens from collections had lead
us to conclude that two species were resident in Britain. These were Chrysoperla lucasina and a species we
referred to as Chrysoperla Cc4.
I was therefore rather surprised and excited when I examined some
specimens Colin Plant had collected in the gardens of Buckingham Palace. I was able to confirm his suspicions that
morphologically they resembled a third species, which we have referred to as Chrysoperla Cc2. To confirm the identity
and presence of this species in the UK it was imperative to obtain some live
material for courtship song analysis.
Therefore, in early February, Colin and I met in the gardens of Buckingham
Palace to search for specimens of hibernating adult Chrysoperla.
Initially, we were both rather sceptical about our likely success since
neither of us had looked for lacewings so early in the year before. We concentrated our efforts in buildings and
sheds, where Cc4 is known to hibernate, and in bushes and rolled up leaves
where Cc2 is most likely to located.
Our search of the buildings proved to be fruitless but our spirits rose
when adult lacewings, in both green and brown colour phases, started to fall
into our beating tray from cherry laurel bushes. Close examination of the habitat showed that most lacewings were
clinging to dried, folded and rolled leaves of plane trees that had become
deeply lodged in the evergreen bushes.
We quickly collected about 25 adult specimens and noticed that most were
in bushes that received direct sunlight and were sheltered from the wind.
I quickly dispatched these specimens, suitably provisioned with damp
cotton wool and yeast extract, to Charles Henry for courtship song
analysis. His reply a few days later
confirmed that indeed Cc2 was present amongst our collection and so a third
species in the C. carnea-group
can be added to the British list. The
appropriate specific names for Cc2 and Cc4 have yet to be established. Two
names are available, C. carnea and C. affinis, but correct assignation will
require careful examination of the Stephens type series. We hope to have this
work completed shortly.
Colin
and I are grateful to Mark Lane for facilitating access to Buckingham Palace
Gardens and his continuing interest and support of our work there.
Henry, C.S., BROOKS, S.J., Duelli, P. & Johnson, J.B. 1996.
Chrysoperla lucasina
(Lacroix): a distinct species of green lacewing, confirmed by acoustical
analysis (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae). Systematic Entomology 21: 205-218.
Henry, C.S., BROOKS, S.J., Duelli, P. & Johnson, J.B. 1999.
Revising the concept of Chrysoperla
mediterranea (Hölzel), a green lacewing associated with conifers:
courtship songs across 2800 kilometers of Europe (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae). Systematic
Entomology 24: 335-350.
Henry,
C.S., BROOKS, S.J., Thierry, D & Duelli, P. & Johnson, J.B. 2000. The
common green lacewing, Chrysoperla carnea
s.l. and the sibling species problem.
In: McEwen, P. & New, T.R. Lacewings
in the crop environment. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. (in press)
Last
December, whilst working through the mountain of paper triangles full of
lacewings from the Rothamsted light trap operated by Andrew Halstead at the
Royal Horticultural Society Gardens in Wisley, Surrey, I came across a female Chrysopa perla/dorsalis specimen that what
far darker than the normal examples which I see (from the night of 16/17 July 1999). The distal half of the
forewing subcosta was black; in the basal half the black of the costal
cross-veins spread laterally on the subcosta so that the basal half of the
subcosta appeared black-and-green striped!
On the hind wing, the subcosta was entirely black.
For
one moment, I thought this was Chrysopa
dorsalis, but there was a
perfectly circular area of green on the vertex (in dorsalis this patch is oval to
rectangular). Unfortunately, when I checked the tarsal claws I discovered that
they all had swollen bases, which meant that the insect could not possibly be dorsalis (AIDGAP key - page 224, couplet
7) and must be Chrysopa perla. Since it was a female, there was no way of
checking, but short of it being a
completely new species, the only other European candidate - Chrysopa regalis - also has simple tarsal
claws (it also has a green subcosta).
Very
few specimens of Chrysopa dorsalis
seem to be encountered in Britain, and they are, of course, always associated
with pine trees, but it is worth bearing in mind that the tarsal claw character
should be checked carefully if anyone does come across one.
The
text books tell us that, amongst the
lacewings, only Chrysoperla carnea
passes the winter as an adult insect - at least in Britain. In spite of this,
there have been several suggestions in the past that Drepanepteryx phalaenoides may also hibernate in this stage
of its life cycle. To the debate, I can now add a positive report of an
over-wintering adult of Wesmaelius
subnebulosus ¾ I found a single female in a curled leaf in bushes
in the garden of Buckingham Palace, London, on
21st February 2000 whilst searching for over-wintering Chrysoperla carnea in the company of
Stephen Brooks.
This
seems to be the first record of this species during the winter period in
Britain (unless you know different!). Interestingly, however, there are
previous records of over-wintering further south in Europe. According to
Laffranque & Canard (1975 A. Zool.-
Ecol. anim., 7 (3): 331
- 343), “All stages endure cold …… When the imagos overwinter, mating, vitellogenesis
and oviposition occur if they receive suitable food”. Their work was carried
out in the Toulouse region of south-west France.
I
wonder how many over-wintering lacewings are overlooked? Indeed, how many of us
look for lacewings at all between November and March!? The search for
over-wintering segregate species within the C.
carnea complex combined with valuable information from Dominique
Thierry on where these insects may be found to produce this female on the first
winter field trip! Hibernation takes
place inside dry, brown, curled leaves. At Buckingham Palace Garden the leaves
which housed sleeping lacewings were of London Plane and were caught up in
bushes growing in sheltered spots that catch the sunshine. None were found in
leaves that were either damp or exposed at the edge of bushes. In forest
situations, leaves remaining on saplings may be suitable if these are sheltered
within the woodland. It is essential to carefully unroll each leaf in order to
find the lacewings.
Chrysoperla mediterranea – has been
recently identified by me in samples from Belgium (collected by Christian
Fassote)and Luxembourg (collected by Evelyne Carrières). It looks like a very small, slim-line C.
carnea but on close examination the tarsal claws lack any basal swelling. This
relatively distinctive species may well be extending its range northwards from
the Mediterranean basin; if this is the case then it is probable that it will
soon arrive in Britain (if it is not already here). I would be keen to look at
any specimens that you might consider candidates (i.e., no basal swelling of
the tarsal claw).
OVIPOSITION BY ATLANTORAPHIDIA MACULICOLLIS
Little
seems to be known in the literature about the ecology and behaviour of
snake-flies in Britain and the following sketchy observations may be of
interest. I encountered a female A.
maculicollis on the edge of Warmwell Heath, Dorset (grid reference
SY 754870) on 28th July 1999. She was observed walking across an oak
fence strainer beneath some Scots pine. As she progressed, she trailed her
ovipositor over the wood, sweeping it from side to side and dabbing the tip on
the surface as she went (Fig. 1).
Figure
1.
Finding
an apparently suitable site, she plunged her ovipositor to the hilt in a
crevice (Fig. 2). I was, however, unable to find what the attraction of that
precise spot was.
Figure
2
It
is interesting that, although the area was overhung by pine, it was not
actually pine bark that was the focus of her interest. I have encounted A.
maculicollis once before in Dorset, again under young, self-sown Scots pine,
but the precise ecologicalk requirements seem to remain a mystery.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Recently
published papers relevant to the study of Neuroptera, Raphidioptera,
Megaloptera or Mecoptera will, if sent to me, automatically be included; older
papers may be included if space permits or if they are particularly relevant.
Aspöck,
U. & Aspöck, H., 1999 Was ist Siniocellia
gigantos Yang 1985? (Neuroptera: Raphidioptera: Inocelliidae). Linzer biol. Beitr. 31: 487 - 492.
One
of the two specimens of Siniocellia gigantos
- the largest known lacewing - was re-examined. The validity of the species and
the genus is confirmed. However, a definite assessment of its systematic
position will not be possible until a male can be found and examined. In
German.
Aspöck,
H., Aspöck, U. & Rausch, H. 1999 Mongoloraphidia
( Alatauoraphidia) pskemiana n. sp. aaus dem westlichen
Tienschan und Beschreibung der Larven von M.
(A.) eklipes U.A. & H.A. und M.
tienshanica H.H. & U.A. &
Rausch (Insecta, Neuropterida, Raphidioptera, Raphidiidae). Entomologische Nachrichten und Berichte 43: 79 - 86.
M. (A.) pskemiana is described as a new
species from Uxbekistan. There are only six species in the subgenus Alatauoraphidia. M. (A.) eklipes has now
been reared and the larva is here described and figured. Additionally, the
larva of M. tienshanica is
described and figured: the larval characters do not suggest a close
relationship with Alatauoraphidia
even though adult male genitalia do. In
German.
Collins,
G. A., 2000. The snakefly Xanthostigma
xanthostigma (Schummel, 1832) (Raphidioptera: Raphidiidae) reared. Entomologists Record & Journal of Variation
112: 24.
Gruppe,
A., 1999. Zum Vorkommen heller und dunkler Individuen van Hemerobius micans Olivier 1792
(Neuroptera: Hemerobiidae). 5. Treffen deutschsprachiger Neuropterologen.
Tagungsbericht. Galathea 5 Supplement (Nürnberg): 13 - 17.
Discusses
the bright and dark phenotypes of H. micans.
Röhricht,
W., 1999. Zur Habitatwahl von Euroleon
nostras (Geoffroy in Fourcroy 1785) (Insecta: neuroptera:
Myrmeleontidae) in Halle (Saale)- Neustadt. 5. Treffen deutschsprachiger
Neuropterologen. Tagungsbericht. Galathea
5 Supplement (Nürnberg): 18 - 25.
Discusses
the distribution of E. nostras in
a housing estate at Halle-Neustadt, eastern Germany. 780 balcony sites were
occupied of which 63% faced south. Older housing areas were preferred to new
estates.
Röhricht,
W., 1999. Zum Überwinterungsvershalten von Chrysoperla carnea s. l. (Stephens)
(Insecta: Neuroptera, Chrysopidae) [poster presentation] 5. Treffen
deutschsprachiger Neuropterologen. Tagungsbericht. Galathea 5
Supplement (Nürnberg): 26 - 31.
The
over-wintering populations of C. carnea
sensu lato were examined in two eastern German 14-storey apartment blocks. The
fourth storey held most specimens and was on a level with nearby tree canopy.
Lit areas were more attractive than
unlit ones. The number with reddish diapause colouration rose in the upper
storeys.
Saure,
C. 1999. Die Florfliege Chrysoperla carnea
s. l. - Das Insekt des Jahres 1999 (Neur., Chrysopidae). Entomlogische Nachrichten und Berichte 43: 5 - 7.
The
lacewing C. carnea - insect of the
year 1999. A general summary - in
German.
Saure,
C. 2000. Sialis sordida Klingstedt, 1932 - eine für Mitteleuropa neue
Schlammfliege (Neuroptera, Megaloptera, Sialidae). Nachrichtenblatt der Bayerisschen Entomologen 49: 37 - 40.
Sialis sordida is reported from Germany -
the first central European record of this normally Scandinavian species. In
German.
Ševčík,
J. 1999. New and interesting records of Neuroptera and Raphidioptera from
Moravia and the Czech part of Silesia. Klapalekiana
33: 75 - 82.
New
records of 26 rare or little known species are reported. Parainocellia braueri (Abarda) is
confirmed as a member of the Czech fauna.
Ševčík,
J. 1999. Notes on the distribution of Panorpa
scorpionflies (Mecoptera: Panorpidae) in Moravia and Silesia (Czech Republic). Klapalekiana 35: 41 - 47.
All
six Czech species of Panorpa
occupy this territory. In English.
Ševčík,
J. 1999. [translated title] Snakeflies
(Insecta: Neuropteroidea: Raphidioptera) of Silesia and northern Moravia - the
present state of knowledge. Čas.
Ślez. Muz. Opava (A) 44:
251 - 258.
Seven
species are reported during 1994 and 1995. Three of these are reported for the
first time in the area studied.
Ševčík,
J. 1999. [translated title] A contribution to the knowledge of Neuroptera of
the Hruby Mountains (Czech Republic). Čas.
Ślez. Muz. Opava (A) 47:
225 - 232.
31
species in four families are recorded. In Czech.
Ševčík,
J. 1999. Neuoptera. In:
Opravilová, V., Vaňhara, J. & Sukop, I. (Eds.), Aquatic invertebrates
of the Pálava Biosphere Reserve of UNESCO. Folia
Fac. Sci. Nat. Univ. Masaryk. Brun, Biol., 101: 199 - 200.
Three
species occur — Osmylus fulvicephalus,
Sisyra fuscata and Sisyra terminalis.
Stelzl,
M. & Devetak, D., 1999. Neuroptera in agricultural ecosystems. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 74: 305 - 321.
Summarises information on biology and ecology of
Chrysopidae, Hemerobiidae and Coniopterygidae followed by a description of
neuropteran communities found in different natural and semi-natural ecosystems,
with special reference to agroecosystems. Literature lists are also provided.
Tröger,
E. J., 1999. Eine neuentdeckte Population von Dendroleon
pantherinus F. (Neuroptera: Myrmeleontidae) am Schwarzwaldraand. 5.
Treffen deutschsprachiger Neuropterologen. Tagungsbericht. Galathea 5
Supplement (Nürnberg): 5 - 7.
A
new population of Dendroleon pantherinus
is reported near the western border of the Black Forest.
Tröger,
E. J., 1999. Neue Neuropteren-Funde auf Kreta. 5. Treffen deutschsprachiger
Neuropterologen. Tagungsbericht. Galathea
5 Supplement (Nürnberg): 8 - 12.
New discoveries on the Neuroptera of Crete are reported.
About
July 2001. Please let me have all contributions by the end of June if
possible. I look forward to hearing
from you.
